


Brave Triple Episode Special (+ Extra)

by kiranosaurusrex



Category: Zyuden Sentai Kyoryuger
Genre: Canon Related, Fluff and Angst, M/M, Vampires
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2016-02-03
Updated: 2016-02-03
Packaged: 2018-05-18 00:33:48
Rating: Mature
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 4
Words: 8,974
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/5891164
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/kiranosaurusrex/pseuds/kiranosaurusrex
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>The kendo club plans a teambuilding activity in the early summer. The other Kyoryugers encourage Souji to go and have fun. Little did they know that the seemingly harmless activity would have serious consequences for their youngest teammate.</p><p>I tried to set this up like actual Kyoryuger episodes (please read the titles in Prof. Ulschade's voice ;).</p><p>BRAVE O: Souji in Danger?! A sluggish early summer<br/>BRAVE OO: Vampire Night -  We need to save Souji-kun!!<br/>BRAVE OOO: Time is running out -  The real culprit is…?<br/>BRAVE Epilogue: Ian, we need to talk</p><p>There are cameos by characters from other series. I didn't tag them because I don't think it's enough of an appearance to warrant a real cross-over. In case you are not familiar with them, I have included notes in the chapters.</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. BRAVE O: Souji in Danger?! A sluggish early summer

Souji looked at the flyer and then at Rin. “A teambuilding activity with the Kendo Club?”

“That’s right. And well, a farewell for the senpai as well. Since they’ll be retiring from club activities after the summer to focus on their entrance exams.” She nodded.

“I’ll think about it.” Souji put the flyer into his bag. He wondered if he should go. The Deboss attacks had gotten less frequent lately but that didn’t mean that had stopped completely. Maybe they were regrouping and waiting for another chance to strike. Souji was unwilling to let his guard down.

Amy found the flyer at the Spirit Base later that afternoon. “Wow! This sounds fun! You’re going, aren’t you, Souji-kun?”

“I am thinking about it.” Souji replied and tried to take the flyer back but it was snatched away by Ian before he could do so. The youngest member of the Kyoryugers sighed and made his way over to his friend. “I am leaning towards no, though.

Ian patted Souji on the back. “What’s wrong with having fun and living your life, Boy? You should make some good memories during your time in high school as well.”

“We’re in the middle of fighting the Deboss still. How can I just go and take a break?” Souji made a face and finally grabbed the flyer from Ian. “It wouldn’t sit well with me if they attacked while I was out.”

Utsusemimaru smiled at the younger swordsman. “Your commitment is admirable, Souji-dono. But Amy-dono and Ian-dono are right. Positive experiences are important. And you’re doing nothing wrong. A break can sometimes help to clear the mind of a wary warrior. I, too, have learned that it is okay to rely on your friends and comrades.”

“Stepping out of your comfort zone also requires a bit of courage.” Ian nudged Souji with his elbow. “If King were here, he’d tell you that going to this thing would be pretty brave and that it’s definitely the right thing to do.” He gave Souji a playful shove. “You don’t trust us old farts to handle ourselves?”

“That’s not-” Souji started but Amy stopped him.

“Go and have fun with your friends, Souji-kun. You’re only young once.” She smiled. “And it would be sad if you had nothing but fighting to look back on later.”

Sighing softly, Souji nodded. “Okay. I guess you’re right.” He grabbed the rest of his things. “I’ll see you guys then.” He left the Spirit Base to go home then - as a high school student he had a curfew to stick to after all.

 

A week later found Souji at an amusement park with the other members of the kendo club then. Most of them were delighted that he had decided to join them.

The group split into smaller groups to move around. Souji found himself with his fellow second years and they decided to check out the Mystery Tower first, a cross between a maze and a haunted house. The two female managers of the club clung to him from the moment they entered, earning him a couple of envious looks from the other males in the group. Not that he noticed them.

When an evil laugh sounded from somewhere off to the side, the girls shrieked and Souji had to worry for a moment whether the blood circulation in his arms would be cut off as they squeezed even harder. “Katsuyama-san, Fujisawa-san,” he tried carefully but they wouldn’t hear any of it and just dragged him forward.

In the next chamber, they were hit by a strong gust of wind. Souji felt very cold one moment - almost to the point that he’d say he was freezing - but then shook it off. 

He was still feeling a bit cold once they got outside but he blamed it on having been in an airconditioned environment for too long. The temperature difference between the inside and outside of the tower was pretty big after all, considering it was the beginning of summer. Although it had been a rather meager summer so far in terms of sun. Most days were clouded over or hazy. He was glad for the cloudy weather today, though. Walking around the amusement park in the blazing sun would have been a lot less pleasant.

Souji quickly forgot about the cold again when they moved on and he found himself enjoying the time spent with his friends and clubmates a lot.

On the way home he made a mental note to thank the others for encouraging him to go.

 

The next morning, Souji noticed how hard it felt to get out of bed. Maybe he’d been more tired than he had thought. It had also taken him quite a while to fall asleep the previous night, so maybe it was a combination of those things.

He’d skip morning practice for once. It wouldn’t hurt.

Souji got ready for school slowly and then made his way over. The weather was still cloudy and maybe a little gloomy but it didn’t dampen his mood. It didn’t help with the sleepiness though, which seemed rather persistent throughout the day.

He even nodded off during the strategy meeting at the Spirit Base later in the day.

Nobody told him off though, considering they all knew what he’d been up to the day before.

“Must have had fun. I’m glad.” Amy smiled.

Daigo grinned. “You guys did the right thing. He looks happy.”

“He’s finally acting more like a kid his age. Let’s hope he keeps that up.” Ian smiled as well. “I wonder if he’s dreaming about a nice girl he spent time with~”

Souji jerked awake then and looked at all the smiling faces around him. A blush rose to his cheeks. “I’m sorry!”

The other’s laughed and they continued their strategy meeting. It was mostly splitting territories to monitor for Deboss activity. The Kyoryugers would patrol the city in order to spot any suspicious movements just in case. Of course Torin was able to sense bigger threats but smaller operations had been known to fly under his radar before.

“Alright then, Nossan and Souji will take care of this area. Amy and Ucchi will go here and Ian and I will take care of the bigger area here.” Daigo drew circles onto the map. “It’s decided then. Let’s go, everyone!”

Torin nodded. “Good luck. Let’s hope tonight will be quiet.”

When they moved out of the Spirit Base, Souji stretched and suppressed a yawn. The sun was setting at the horizon already. “I can’t believe I fell asleep.”

“Things like that happen, Souji-kun. It’s only normal when you’re young and enjoying life. Ah, to be young.” Nobuharu chuckled softly.

“Still.” Souji muttered and then looked around. He felt awake now, though. Awake and full of energy. So he’d be more than alert for their patrol. “Let’s go then, Nossan.”

Just like Torin had hoped, the night remained quiet and uneventful. Souji blamed his excess energy on being unable to fall asleep again that night. He shouldn’t have taken that nap at the Spirit Base. When he finally fell asleep, it was early in the morning and his alarm roused him earlier than he would have liked it to. So he decided to skip morning practice again in order to get a little bit more sleep - or at least rest - before going to school.

The result was another sluggish day and a sleepless night. It continued for a few days and Souji almost felt like he was going to get used to it.

His fellow Kyoryugers didn’t notice it much because he made an effort to not let it affect the meetings at the Spirit Base and the patrols at night were no problem because he was usually wide awake for them. It wasn’t like he was lying to them, he told himself. He just couldn’t let something like this bother the rest or hinder the team.

Things changed after the fifth day though. Bright sunshine had greeted Souji when he had left his home in the morning and had immediately been followed by a splitting headache. Even after getting some painkillers from the school nurse, things hadn’t improved much. His energy had also flagged visibly and the way from school to the entrance of the Spirit Base had been almost excruciatingly difficult. It had felt endlessly long.

Once he arrived at the Spirit Base, Souji pretty much collapsed onto one of the blocks around the stone table. His bag and bokuto hit the floor with a dull thud.

“Souji-kun?” Amy went to the other’s side. “Are you alright?”

“Boy,” Ian frowned, putting down his communicator. “Is something wrong?”

Shaking his head, Souji tried to take a few deep breaths and regain control over his body. “It’s okay. I’m okay. Maybe the heat just pulled a number on me.”

Nobuharu got up to get a drink for the other. Amy got a little paper fan and tried to cool the youngest Kyoryuger down a little bit.

Daigo appeared in the Spirit Base then and hopped down the steps. “Oh, everyone’s here already? You’re early today, aren’t you, Souji?”

“Ah well, kendo practice was cancelled because a lot of members were missing, so I came when classes finished.” Souji was still gasping for breath. Why was he so tired? He hadn’t run over or anything. Then again, when he thought about it, he’d been feeling even more sluggish than the previous days since morning. 

Even after barely sleeping at night he hadn’t had too much of a problem with getting up at sunrise but today had been an almost excruciating battle and if not for his iron will, he would have probably remained in bed.

“I think something is wrong with you.”  
“I think something is wrong with me.”

Souji looked up at Ian, who’d spoken at the same time as him.

“You have been out of it ever since you came back from the trip with your friends.” Ian crossed his arms. “Have you been sleeping properly?”

“No.” Souji admitted. “I can barely sleep at night.”

Daigo frowned. “Torin, could this be the work of a DeboMonster?”

“What makes you think that, King?” Amy asked. “Couldn’t it just be, you know, summer fatigue or something like that?”

Shaking his head, Daigo shot Ian a look. “I think that’s what prompted Ian to suspect something as well. Souji mentioned other members of his club not turning up. If you take the timing into consideration it seems suspicious.”

“As expected of you, King. You pick things up fast.” Ian smiled but then his expression turned serious again. “This might be the feeling of unease we’ve all had for a while. The Deboss are finally making a move again.” His eyes came to rest on Souji. “Who else was with you at the amusement park? We should check if any of them are displaying similar symptoms and try to figure out what cause them.”

“There’s a roster in my folder.” Souji tried to haul himself up to go with the rest but Ian went to push him down to lie on one of the lawn chairs. “You stay put for now, Boy. We’re going to handle this.”

“But-”

“Rest a little bit and when you feel better, you can join us, okay?” Daigo made a compromise. “Torin will keep you company.” He looked at the wise deity and then he joined the five others as they left the Spirit Base.

Splitting up, they went to check the people on the list. It became very obvious soon, that there was some sort of link.

Amy contacted Ian, Daigo and Utsusemimaru. “Their families said the same thing. Everyone is extremely tired during the day and then wide awake at night. A lot of them refuse to leave their rooms, so their parents are really worried.”

“Same here. Although they said they tried to move during the day but just couldn’t and looking at light gives them terrible headaches or worse.” Daigo hummed. “Let’s meet at the amusement park Souji and his friends went to. So far it’s our only clue.”

“Roger that.”

They arrived at the amusement park after nightfall. It was still bustling with activity.

“Where do we even start?” Amy asked.

The sound of a motorcycle alerted them and when they turned around Souji was approaching them on one of the DeinoChasers.

“Souji-kun!”

“Souji-dono, are you feeling alright?” Utsusemimaru asked.

“Yeah. I feel fine now.” Actually he felt really good. “And when I heard Torin say that you had gone to the amusement park I couldn’t just sit still anymore.” His eyes wandered over the crowd around them. “Maybe we should start with the attractions. I remember which ones we’ve been on.”

He looked around and then found the entrance to one of them. “Over there.”

“Where?” Daigo and Nobuharu looked over the heads of people. “Which one?”

Souji frowned but shook it off. “The entrance to the Mirror House should be somewhere there. Oh and the Mystery Tower.” Could the others not see them? This was suspicious. This definitely was the Deboss’ doing then. “Let’s go.”

The attractions were where Souji had seen them though and did not appear to be invisible to any of the others.

Considering the time limit before the park closed, they split into two groups, Ian, Daigo and Nobuharu went into the Mystery Tower while Amy, Utsusemimaru and Souji entered the Mirror House. Just went the latter group was about to turn another corner, Amy’s communicator rang.

“It’s a hit you guys. The DeboMonster is towering over us in the tower!!” Nobuharu notified them. The sound of fighting and arguing could be heard in the background.

“Let us go.” Utsusemimaru pulled out his beast battery.

Souji and Amy nodded.

They made their way over to the tower and found their friends fighting a bunch of Zorima and a DeboMonster that looked like a giant fridge with eyes on it. Luckiero and Aigaron could be found somewhere in the fray, the latter both fighting KyoryuBlack.

“Ah there are more of them. That stings!!” Aigaron cried a single tear. “I cannot risk losing this servant of mine so soon. So let’s go. Zorima, take care of them!”

“Wait!” KyoryuBlack hollered and tried to run after the DeboMonster, Aigaron and Luckiero as they left but a bunch of Zorima blocked his way.

As not to endanger any visitors at the park, the six of them lured the Zorima outside to a nearby open field to fight them. By the time they had managed to defeat them, the sun was starting to rise above the horizon slowly.

The moment the sky turned lighter, Souji’s transformation dissolved and he collapsed onto his knees, energy drained from his body.

“Souji!”

“Souji-kun!”

Barely able to keep his eyes open, Souji tried to fight the feeling of fatigue and stand but found himself unable to do so, needless to say to move at all.

“This won’t do, Boy. Come here.” Taking off his jacket, Ian placed it over Souji’s head. 

The darkness somehow made Souji feel better almost immediately. “Ian?”

“Come on. Let’s get you back to the Spirit Base and inside, Boy. Being out in the sun doesn’t seem to be doing you any good.” Ian grabbed his Gaburevolver and called forth a DeinoChaser. “I’m going back with him. I think I know what’s going on.”

Daigo nodded. “We’ll be right with you.” He helped Ian to get Souji onto the bike with him and sent his teammates off.


	2. BRAVE OO: Vampire Night -  We need to save Souji-kun

When he was back inside the Spirit Base, Souji felt a little better. At least as long as he stayed under Ian’s jacket. The light in the base was making him feel sick. He barely registered how the others got back until they started talking.

“I figured out what happened and what’s wrong with our boy and his friends now.” Ian crossed his arms. “Luckiero let the name of the DeboMonster slip when we fought just now and it perfectly connects the puzzle pieces.”

“That weird fridge thing?” Amy asked. “What is it?”

Ian hummed and replied, “Luckiero called him DeboDracooler. In other words, Dracula.” He looked at Souji. “A vampire.”

“A vampire?” All heads turned towards their youngest.

“Think about it,” Ian crossed his arms. “He is sensitive to light, sunlight especially. Then, sleeping during the day and being awake and full of energy during the night. Adding to that, some of his friends locking themselves up in their rooms. They must have turned into vampires quicker than others. Boy might have been able to keep it at bay because of his bravery. But who knows for how long. It’s getting worse already.”

Utsusemimaru frowned. “And now we don’t even know where the DeboMonster might be.”

“What’s going to happen to Souji-kun?” Amy asked. “He’s going to be okay, right?”

Daigo hit his hand with his fist. “We’ll find that DeboMonster and crush it before Souji gets worse.” He went to place a hand onto Souji’s shoulder. “I promise we’ll help you, Souji.”

“King...everyone…” Souji peered out from under the jacket. “I’m sorry.”

“Don’t blame yourself. It wasn’t something you could control.” Amy shook her head.

Agreeing, Utsusemimaru crouched down in front of Souji. “And it’s not like we’re not to blame, Souji-dono. We were the ones who encouraged you to go in the first place.”

“I will try to find out more about DeboDracooler’s powers.” Torin said. “Everyone else, we’re counting on you to find and defeat it.”

“Leave it to us.” Daigo nodded but then yawned. “Well, after a nap maybe.”

Ian stifled a yawn as well. None of them had slept yet after all and they had been fighting all night. “Yeah. I doubt the monster will show itself during the day. It might be affected by the sunlight and day in the same way.”

“Let’s go and get some shut-eye then.” Nobuharu pulled out some more lawnchairs.

“You get some rest, too, Boy.” Ian smiled. “Keep the jacket for now.”

Souji was glad the jacket hid his face. He was probably making an awkward and embarrassed face right now. “Thanks.”

Their searches the following night and the day and night after were fruitless and Souji’s condition seemed to be even worse than before with every day that passed. Torin was trying to stabilize the youngest Kyoryuger’s condition somehow but he could only do so much. When the team met at the Spirit Base again Ian hit one of the pillars angrily.

“There must be a reason why they’re hiding. They want time to pass. And we can’t do anything to stop them. Damn it.”

“Ian, you’re bleeding.” Souji - standing closest to Ian - wanted to reach for a handkerchief but suddenly found himself leaning down to lick the cut on Ian’s hand.

“Woah, what?” Ian pulled his hand back, startled. “Boy, what are you doing?”

What WAS he doing? Souji froze.

“Ah, looks like he’s starting to turn.”

“Starting to turn.”

Two unknown female voices could be heard. A pair of girls had appeared in the Spirit Base with Torin. They were dressed in what looked like Gothic Lolita fashion, lots of lace, satin and ribbons in black and dark blue. A pair of devil-wings sat on their backs.

“Wow Torin, who is that?” Amy asked.

The girls smiled and walked over to where Souji and Ian were standing.

“We came to help.”

“Came to help.”

Upon seeing the girls Ian flipped his casanova switch on and produced two flowers to hand them out. “I appreciate your help, girls. Mind if you enlighten us a little more about exactly how you’re planning to do that?” He might have seemed smitten but there was an underlying tone that said caution and suspicion. Daigo noticed that Ian had maneuvered himself into a better attacking range, should the two try something funny.

The girls chuckled.

“We’re Night.”

“And Mare.”

“And sorry, we don’t like flowers, little black dinosaur.”

“Black dinosaur.”

Torin stepped forward as well. “I contacted someone who was said to be knowledgeable when it comes to vampires and the supernatural. The Ozu family said they would send us an expert on vampires. It appears that these girls were sent by them.”

“Why do they echo each other or end each other’s sentences?” Amy wondered.

Utsusemimaru was moving away subtly.

“I feel like I’m seeing double. And double the trouble.” Nobuharu scratched his head.

The two girls grinned and put their hands together. A flash of light blinded them all and suddenly a single figure stood in the place of two.

“A DeboMonster?” The six Kyorugers pulled their GabuRevolvers out immediately but Torin stopped them.

“No, she isn’t one of them.”

“My name is Phantom Spy Vancuria. I am a Queen Vampire from the kingdom of the Infershia.” She bowed. “And as such an expert when it comes to vampires.”

“Wow!” Amy voiced what they were all thinking.

Vancuria separated into Night and Mare again and they walked up to Souji, each of them taking one of his arms. “You’re turning into a vampire.”

“Vampire.”

“Once the full moon rises, the transformation will be complete.”

“Complete.”

“What will that mean for Souji?” Daigo asked.

Night hummed. “He’ll need blood. If a vampire doesn’t drink blood, they’ll die.”

“Die.”

“You also won’t be able to walk into the sun. If you step into the daylight after you complete your transformation, you will turn into dust.”

“Dust.”

Ian growled. “That bastard Aigaron. This is what he’s aiming for.”

Utsusemimaru echoed the other’s sentiment. “The sorrow of the people who lose their life and the sorrow of the people who lose someone dear to them. It’s despicable!”

Mare produced a small crystal vial and Night pricked Souji’s finger. A drop of blood dripped into the vial and Mare stoppered it. 

“We’ll take this to have a better look at it.” Night said.

“Look at it.”

“Since this is another vampire’s doing, we need more clues.”

“Clues.”

“We’d be grateful for any help you can provide us.” Torin bowed. The six Kyoryugers bowed as well. Night and Mare smiled and then vanished into thin air.

Once they were gone, Souji looked down. The smell of blood still lingered in the air and he could still taste Ian’s on his tongue. It was so sweet, so tempting. He wanted more.

A flash of hot pain went through his body and he fell onto his knees with a pained groan.

“Souji!”

When the others moved close to him, Souji lunged forward and tried to jump Ian. His eyes were glowing red and a pair of sharp fangs had descended on his lips. The only thought on his mind was Ian’s pale neck and the vein on its side. The blood that was flowing through the other. He needed it. He needed it now.

“King, grab a rope!” Nobuharu yelled and then grabbed Souji to restrain him. “This vampire will go on a pyre!” He pulled the younger male to one of the pillars and Daigo and Amy wrapped the rope around Souji. He fought them of course.

From one moment to the next, Souji’s eyes turned normal again though and the fangs disappeared. “What…”

The five Kyoryugers shared a look and then looked at their youngest once more, tied to the pillar of the Spirit Base.

Souji felt his heart grow cold when he saw the looks the other’s gave him. Of course there was worry but there was also something akin to fear. They were afraid of him. And they had every right. If he stayed like this or worse, if he turned into a vampire completely, if he ever lost control, he could-

He didn’t want to think about it. Thinking about it made his heart ache even more. Souji tried to get himself under control again and went limp in the ropes.

“You should go. Leave me here like this. It’s safer.”

“Boy.” Ian had recovered from his initial shock. “We’re going to turn you back to normal. No matter what. I promise.”

“Yeah. You bet we do.” Daigo nodded. 

A gust of cold air blew through the base and Torin looked up. “The Deboss Army is on the move. Move out, Kyoryugers!”

“Let’s go, everyone!” Daigo grabbed his GabuRevolver and the others followed suit, leaving the Spirit Base. Souji looked down and tried not to berate himself too much. 

He didn’t get time to think about that as his eyes turned blood red again a moment later and he struggled against the ropes holding him. They didn’t hold him for much longer and he broke free. Before he could jump and attack Torin though, Souji regained control over himself. Grabbing his GabuRevolver he stumbled to the exit.

“Souji! Where are you going?”

“Tell the others that it’s better this way. I’m too dangerous like this. I can’t stay here.” Souji grated out. “Just tell them it’s okay and focus on fighting the Deboss Army.” He vanished, leaving the Spirit Base before Torin could stop him.

“Souji!”

 

The Deboss Army attack had turned out to be merely a bunch of Zorima harassing people on the street. The five Kyoryugers had dealt with that quickly and returned to their base.

“Yo, Torin, we’re back.” Daigo greeted the wise deity and then saw the snapped pieces of rope on the floor by the pillar where they had left Souji earlier.

“Boy.” Ian dashed right out of the Spirit Base again without another word.

“Ian! Where are you-”

Daigo stopped the others. “Let him handle this. I think Ian will manage.” His smile was confident. “Because those two understand each other best.”

 

Souji had withdrawn deep into the bamboo forest and asked Zakutor to guard him. The darkness of the forest felt relaxing and Souji felt some of the tension in him disappear. He wouldn’t be able to attack anyone here.

He jumped when he heard the sound of footsteps. Zakutor made a soft noise in greeting, so it had to be one of the others. Souji’s partner wouldn’t greet them in such a friendly manner otherwise. And nobody else knew of this place.

“I know you’re here, Boy.” Ian’s voice was soft.

Souji didn’t want to answer but his partner moved to reveal him. So he looked at Ian angrily. “You idiot, why did you come here?”

“Because I’m not going to let you suffer alone. I’m not going to abandon you.” Ian grabbed Souji’s shoulders and forced the younger male to look at him. “Who is the idiot here? Don’t you trust your team? Your friends?” He looked down. “Don’t you trust me?”

“Ian.” Souji looked at the other but then averted his eyes when he felt something inside of him contract painfully. He was so cold. So cold. Especially his heart. It hurt so much.

“Boy!” Ian let go of Souji’s shoulders when his eyes noticed something around Souji’s neck and pulled the uniform jacket open as well as the shirt underneath. “What on earth?” Souji’s body was turning blue around where the the heart was. Blue and cold, like ice. The thin lines of ice had crept up to Souji’s neck already and were apparently spreading further still.

By now, Souji seemed to be so cold that his breath was materializing in a soft cloud of smoke. Something that shouldn’t be happening, considering it was summer.

Cursing softly Ian pulled out his communicator. “Everyone can you-” he was cut off by the sound of battle. “Are you guys fighting?”

“Hey Ian.” Daigo’s voice came through the device. “Did you find Souji?”

“Yeah I did. Where are you guys? What happened?” Ian held Souji closer on instinct, trying to warm him with his own body heat.

Daigo grunted, obviously punching someone. “DeboDracooler showed himself for real this time. We’re going to kick his ass and save Souji!”

Ian could then hear Aigaron’s voice in the background. “Isn’t my servant great? His Frost Bite infects the human body. It’s so sad. Turning into a monster that nobody loves anymore. And then dying all alone and miserable because living means to hurt your friends. You lose all the love and your heart will grow cold without love until it freezes. Isn’t that the ultimate sorrow? Ah, it’s so sorrowful it stings! Little KyoryuGreen has been abandoned by all of his friends to die alone. Ah, it so sad!”

“Abandoned by all of my friends.” Souji’s voice was barely more than a whisper. “To die…”

Ending the connection when nothing else came from the other side, Ian saved the place where Daigo and the others had been located via the GPS (or whatever technology these things used really). “Don’t listen to him, Boy. That’s not true.”

Souji made a soft, pained sound and his head rolled to the side.

“Hey, Boy! Stay with me!”

“Blood.” Souji croaked. His eyes were glowing in a faint red again. “Need…”

He pushed Ian away from himself. “You need to get away from me.”

Ian caught himself before he could fall over. Somewhere at the back of his mind he could hear the echo of the words of Night and Mare had spoken earlier.

 

_“He’ll need blood. If a vampire doesn’t drink blood, they’ll die.”_

_“Die.”_

 

He moved closer to Souji again. “The ladies said you need blood or you’ll die. And I’m sure as hell not letting you die, Boy. Oh no.” Ian shrugged off one side of his jacket and bared his neck. “Take it you idiot.”

“I can’t, Ian. I won’t-” Souji wanted to protest more but was silenced. Silenced by a pair of lips on his. The kiss was short, sweet and chaste and when Ian pulled away again, his voice was soft, pleading and gentle.

“I can’t lose you, Boy. Not now. Not ever. Not like this. Not when I can save you! Please!” Ian pressed Souji’s face to the crook of his neck. Before his brain could process what had just happened, Souji’s new vampire instincts kicked in. He was too weak to suppress them any longer. And at this distance, he could smell the blood, almost taste it already. So Souji obliged and sunk his fangs into Ian’s neck.

A soft hiss of pain escaped Ian but he held still. If he made a wrong move now, the boy might rip his neck off.

Once the initial feeling of discomfort vanished, Ian actually felt himself enjoying the sensation of having his blood taken. He sighed softly. At least he had intended to sigh. It had come out more like a moan, he noted in embarrassment.

Souji pulled away abruptly when he heard the sound Ian made. The red glow in his eyes vanished as did the fangs. Looking down to touch his chest he found it warm and the blue spot around his heart had disappeared as well. His mind was clear now. At least clearer than before and the strength had returned to his arms and legs.

“Ian.” Souji worried his lip.

“No time to think, Boy. Let’s go and kick that weird monster’s ass so you can turn back to normal.” Ian got up and offered Souji a hand to help him up as well.

Souji nodded and took the offered hand. “Let’s go.”

They took the DeinoChasers to go and join their friends.

“Kyoryu Change - FIRE!”

 

There were several small battles on the large square when KyoryuBlack and Green finally arrived. KyoryuRed was fighting DeboDracooler and KyoryuGold was keeping Aigaron busy. KyoryuPink and KyoryuBlue were fighting a bunch of Zorima, who were surrounding a group of people on the far side of the square. 

Some of the people were slowly but surely turning into ice-figurines. The sorrow they emitted was gathered up by the mask of sorrow on Aigaron’s armor.

KyoryuGreen spotted Rin and some of his friends from the kendo club among the people.

“Let’s go, Boy.”

“Yeah.”

“Armed on!”

They jumped right into the battle, flattening a couple of Zorima as they barged in on the bikes. KyoryuBlack fired a round of shots at DeboDracooler and Aigaron.

With the help of their Green, Pink and Blue managed to defeat the Zorima and moved to join their comrades to fight the DeboMonster and Aigaron. The latter vanished from the scene at some point but nobody chased after him. The Kyoryugers were busy avoiding the ‘frost bite’ attacks of DeboDracooler.

“Red, I’ll distract him. You guys go for it with Kentorospiker!” Black yelled at the others and started up the engine of the DeinoChaser again.

“Roger. Let’s go, Kentorospiker!” Red pulled out and threw the Beast Battery.

Black drove circles around the DeboMonster, narrowly avoiding it’s attacks until the other five were ready with the set-up for the counter-attack.

“Zyuden Brave Finish!”

DeboDracooler vanished in a huge explosion and its body disappeared, turning into dust.

The six Kyoryugers de-transformed and Souji heaved a soft sigh. The people behind them had started to thaw again as well and were looking around in confusion. 

“We did it!” Amy cheered. “Now Souji-kun won’t turn into a vampire anymore!”

Ian wanted to celebrate with the others but for some reason he felt that he couldn’t. Something was off. Frowning he looked at the little pile of dust that had been the DeboMonster a few moments ago. Why hadn’t Luckiero made the monster grow? Also, had a DeboMonster just turned into dust before?

The sky was starting to grow lighter and the first rays of sunshine hit the square.

“Ugh.” Souji clamped a hand over his mouth as a wave of nausea hit him.

Five heads snapped around to look at him.

Utsusemimaru steadied the other. “Souji-dono is still a vampire? But how is that possible? DeboDracooler was defeated!”

“It is possible. If there was more than one monster involved in all of this.” Someone threw a long, black robe over Souji. “Let’s talk about it a bit more at your base, shall we?” The male dressed in black and yellow suggested.

“Who are you?” Nobuharu asked.

The male smiled. “I am a magician.”

Daigo smiled as well. “Oh, you must be one of the guys Torin was talking about. Ozu…”

“Tsubasa.” he nodded. “Come on. We shouldn’t stay here.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Night & Mare (or Nai & Mea) aka Vancuria and Ozu Tsubasa are from Mahou Sentai Magiranger.


	3. BRAVE OOO: Time is running out -  The real culprit is…?

They returned to the Spirit Base with the magician and Tsubasa retrieved the crystal vial from one of his pockets that Night and Mare had taken with them the day before.

“We analyzed Souji-kun’s blood and came to the conclusion that he wasn’t bitten by a DeboMonster but an actual vampire. Most likely even a queen vampire.” Tsubasa then pulled out another item. It was a bright white, shimmering Beast Battery. “This is a Dawn Crystal Beast Battery. You will have to shoot the real vampire with it to defeat it. That’s the only way to safe Souji-kun. The best option would be to use a crossbow.”

Torin stroked his beard. “Ian, you must use Parasa Shot to hit the vampire then.”

Tsubasa handed the Beast Battery to Ian.

“But where was the vampire? That’s what I don’t get.” Daigo ruffled the back of his head. “Where is he hiding? We need to lure him out and kick his ass!”

After putting the battery in a safe place, Ian walked to the table in the middle of the room. “Plezuon Lab, do you hear me? Yayoi-chan, can you send us the recording of the last battle against DeboDracooler? I need to check something,” Ian opened the communications channel on the stone table.

“What do you want to look at, Ian?” Daigo asked.

“I have a hunch.” Ian replied.

“Coming right up, Ian-san.” Yayoi’s voice answered and a moment later the video file appeared on the interface.

Ian opened the video and watched it once, twice. “I found it!”

The screen showed DeboDracooler.

Tsubasa nodded. “Yeah. That’s definitely where he was the whole time.”

“Look at the ‘fridge’ part of the monster. What does it remind you of?” Ian pointed at it.

Daigo’s mouth formed an ‘o’ and his face lit up in understanding. He hit Ian on the back with a smile. “That’s just like our Ian. Your hunch was spot on!”

“A coffin, huh? I shall make coffee.” Nobuharu went to do just that.

“It bothered me that Aigaron just abandoned his monster mid-fight and didn’t even have Luckiero around to make it grow big. It only served as a hiding place for the real vampire. And as another source of food, I guess. So it sucked DeboDracooler empty just before we defeated him. And then it escaped here.” Ian fast-forwarded the video and then pointed at a set of glowing red eyes appearing just before the Kentorospiker hit the DeboMonster.

Tsubasa crossed his arms. “She’ll most likely be somewhere dark with many people, many potential victims. Like a live house or an amusement park.”

“She was at the amusement park before. So that leaves a live house. Are there any concerts going on?” Daigo asked.

Yayoi replied via the communicator, “I will look it up immediately, Daigo-san!”

Souji looked at Tsubasa from below the dark hood. “You sure seem to know a lot about this, Tsubasa-san.”

Smiling, Tsubasa shrugged. “Well, we dealt with a similar problem before. So I guess you could say I have a bit of experience when it comes to these matters.” He looked at Souji a little more closely then. “You seem to be doing well, Souji-kun?”

“Yeah. I’m better now that we’re here and not outside.” Souji nodded.

Amy hummed. “But you were also sluggish in here before, right?”

Souji shared a meaningful look with Ian and shook his head. Ian didn’t say anything.

Daigo, having noticed the brief exchange, stretched. “Well, let’s be glad Souji is at least feeling better. Let Yayoi-chan and Ian here deal with the more complex stuff for now. Amy, Nossan, Ucchi, let’s rest so we can fight again later.”

Tsubasa said his goodbye and left then, having fulfilled his duty.

Yayoi paged all the communicators later with the address of a livehouse where concerts would take place later at night.

Before Souji could follow the rest of his team to the livehouse, Ian stopped him. “Boy, I think you should take some more before you go and fight. Your movements have become a little sluggish again. And your eyes are red.”

“I can’t accept this, Ian. You already gave me so much yesterday. If I take more then you-” Apparently Ian wouldn’t have any of this because Souji found his lips pressed against the crook of Ian’s neck again. His vampire instincts were unable to resist.

When he sunk his fangs into the other’s skin this time, Souji noticed something.

He was seeing images. Images of...him?

It was like he was looking at himself through someone else’s eyes. He could see himself at the Spirit Base. Then practicing kendo at the Rippukan dojo.

Souji thought he recognized the images. Those things had happened before. Not too long ago. Were these Ian’s memories? Why were there so many of him?

One particular memory made his eyes widen and it was what made him pull away from Ian again as well. Souji touched his lips. He’d almost forgotten about that. About the previous night in the bamboo forest. Ian had…

“Alright then, Boy. Let’s go.” Ian didn’t leave him any time to think.

Souji shook his head to clear if and nodded. There were more important things now.

 

At the livehouse, a female singer was about to take the stage when she was bumped off by a figure dressed in black and purple. The female singer stumbled into the wing and turned back into Candelira. Luckiero came over immediately to help her up.

“Candelira-sama! Are you okay?”

Candelira sniffed. “She’s a meanie! She’s stealing my show!”

Dark pipe music started and a shrill voice started to sing until a gunshot cut off the cords powering the speakers. When the lights turned on, the audience was gone and instead six colourful warriors stood in their place.

“This mu-sic is making me-sick.” KyoryuBlue snorted at his own joke.

The other five shivered.

KyoryuRed shook it off and pointed at the ‘singer’ on stage. “This is your final show, vampire because we’re going to turn you into dust!”

“You are welcome to try, you foolish Kyoryugers. I am Memorella, the most beautiful of all queen vampires. And I will end you!” While she had been wearing the mask of joy on her face before, it now turned into the one of anger. Shrieking loudly, she launched herself at the Kyoryugers, fingernails growing into claws. A group of Zorima appeared to back her up.

“We won’t get suckered by you, sucker! Yoisho!!” KyoryuBlue tossed a Zorima in her general direction as he joined KyoryuRed.

KyoryuBlack called forth his Parasa Shot and loaded it with the Dawn Crystal battery. He only had one shot. He could not miss it.

“You focus on getting a clear shot, we’ll handle the rest.” Red patted Black on the back and then leapt into battle.

Things didn’t go smoothly though, Memorella’s shrieking (or singing, as she called it) affected the Kyoryugers more than they would have liked. It was like it was momentarily paralyzing their movements, enough time for the Zorima to land a couple of hits.

“She’s messing up our melody.” KyoryuPink stumbled back. “What do we do?”

KyoryuBlack looked around. There was a walkway above them where the lights were. “If I could get up there without her noticing I might be able to get a better shot. And the soundwaves are only affecting us when we’re in their direct path. You guys think you can keep her busy enough for a bit?”

KyoryuRed nodded and jumped right back into the fray. “Leave it to us.”

Before he moved to execute his plan, KyoryuBlack put his hand onto KyoryuGreen’s shoulder. “I’m going to turn you back to normal, Boy.” And with that he was off.

“You better.” KyoryuGreen muttered and then focused on the fight again. “If you think you’ve got us, you’re far too naive. Superior Ripping Edge!” The attack had more force behind it than usual, the vampirism was enhancing his physical strength. It actually came in handy right now.

Suddenly Memorella appeared right in front of KyoryuGreen. “You! I remember you. You should be one of my servants by now!” With a touch of her hand, KyoryuGreen’s transformation dissolved, leaving Souji standing in front of her.

“Can’t...move…”

“I like you. You’re cute. I shall make you mine.” Memorella bared her fangs. “One more bite and you’ll be mine forever.”

“I’m afraid I can’t have that. He’s too good for you!” Someone called out and a moment later, a shot was fired. It hit Memorella square in the chest - right through the heart.

She stared at the crack in her body. “Impossible!” With another loud shriek, she burst into flames and exploded. KyoryuRed pulled Souji out of harm’s way at the nick of time and shielded his teammate.

“Everything okay, Souji?”

“Yeah. Thanks, King.” Souji nodded. He flexed his fingers. His body felt different as well. Did that mean they had succeeded?

Luckiero hopped out then. “Ah, she exploded but Master Aigaron said she’d come back to life if I did this because we fused her with some cells from Deboss-sama before..” He pulled out his watering pot and sprinkled the Joyro onto the remains of Memorella.

The earth underneath the feet of the Kyoryugers rumbled dangerously and then the gigantic version of Memorella broke through the roof of the livehouse.

Souji transformed back into KyoryuGreen. “Guess it’s time to call for help. Come, Za-”

Before they could summon their partners, Memorella let out another shriek before she turned into stone and then, with a nudge by one of the RaburRevolvers turned into dust. When her giant form disappeared, the sun shone into the ruins of the livehouse.

“I didn’t realize that so much time passed.” Daigo crossed his arms. “Well, one thing less to worry about.” Then he yawned. “And now, we’ll have to get back to a normal sleeping schedule.”

Souji basked in the warm sunrays and took a deep breath before he released it again.

“Good to be human again?” Ian nudged the teen.

“Yeah.” Souji nodded.

Nobuharu stretched. “Well, that’s that then. Nice fight, nice night. The end.”

Notes: Memorella is based on the American pendent of DeboKyawaen, who is classified as a “Vampire” in the monster category.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Ozu Tsubasa is MagiYellow from Mahou Sentai Magiranger. He was the one who made the "Dawn Crystal" to defeat the Queen Vampire, who had turned his sister Houka into a vampire in episodes 11-12.


	4. BRAVE Epilogue: Ian, we need to talk

“Ian, we need to talk.” Souji looked around. The group was dispersing now that they had defeated the monster. The others were well out of earshot. “In private, if possible.”

“I knew you’d want to. I’ll meet you after school. Try and get some sleep now, so you won’t fall over.” Ian suggested.

Souji snorted softly. “Considering everything that happened in the past few days, I think I might be used to this schedule now.” He did manage to squeeze in some sleep before school though and was happy to find everyone from the kendo club back as well. Most if not all of them seemed to have no memories of what had happened, which relieved Souji.

When the bell announced the end of the day, he said goodbye quickly and left the building.

Ian was leaning against the rail by the school gates and lazily lifted a hand in greeting when Souji approached him. “Hey there, boy. How was school?”

“What are you doing here?” Souji hissed and walked up to the other. “You know someone your age shouldn’t lurk around a school gate like this.” He sighed. “Although I guess you ARE a pervert, so it won’t add much to your track record?”

“Oh my,” Ian chuckled. “I do have my standards, you know? I’m not going to go around picking up high school girls.” He grinned. “I’m only here to pick up one person.” He tossed a helmet at Souji. A DeinoChaser was waiting not too far away from the other on the street. “We have somewhere to be.” He put his own helmet on.

Souji’s eyes followed the movement, before he shook his head and put the helmet on and got onto the bike behind Ian. He just hoped nobody saw them. Well, the things you risked when you were a hero fighting for the safety of the human race and the fate of the planet. Or when you had a crush on someone. It was on about the same level.

It was the first time for Souji to step into Ian’s apartment. Or room really, in an old western style mansion used as a share-house. It was owned by some violinist guy apparently. The walls were thicker than in Japanese houses like Souji’s own, he noticed when he walked in.

Ian’s room was not as messy as Souji might have imagined. It wasn’t messy at all really. At least Souji wouldn’t call it that. Of course it wasn’t as orderly as his own but everything in here seemed to have its place. Also the bed was made, the sofa was free of any clutter, the bookshelves were neatly arranged. One of the work-tables he could see a few open books and a couple of fossils and rocks on it and something that looked like old artefacts.

“Considering you still live at home and Torin’s at the Spirit Base, I figure this is as private as it gets.” Ian walked inside. “Would you like some tea? I have ice. Or would you prefer a cream soda? Then I’ll have to see if Wataru has some in the kitchen.”

“Tea is fine.” Souji shook his head and put his wooden sword and bag down. “But that can wait. Ian, are you avoiding the subject?”

“Ah, so straightforward. It’s a trait you only developed ever since this whole thing started.” He turned around to look at Souji through his bangs. “Isn’t it, Boy?”

Souji stalked over and pushed Ian against the wall. “Cut the crap, Ian. I was in your mind today. I have questions.” His grip loosened a bit. “Lots of them.”

“Shoot then, Boy. Maybe one of the bullets will hit?” Ian offered.

“Okay. First question: will you kiss me again? Now that I’m fully conscious?” Souji asked. The question seemed to have caught Ian off-guard.

“Boy…”

“Or do I have to kiss you?” Souji asked another question. “What will it be?” He actually didn’t wait for the other to answer him and leaned in to kiss Ian clumsily.

The other responded to the kiss after a moment of initial surprise but then gently pushed Souji away. They looked at each other for a moment, silently gauging the other’s reaction.

Ian spoke again first. “Do you really mean it, Boy? This...we...it won’t go well.”

“Who says that?” Souji grabbed Ian’s hoodie, firsting it tightly. “Is it because somebody said I’m not old enough? Well guess what, that’s not going to be too much longer. I’ll be 18 before you know it. And I know what I’m feeling.” He leaned forward a bit, rested his head against the older male’s shoulder. His voice was quieter when he spoke again.“You’re not the only one who’s been watching someone, Ian. I’ve been watching you, too. All this time. Thinking it was impossible. You’re a womanizer, you wouldn’t look at someone like me because all I am...is a ‘boy’ after all. That’s what I thought.”

Suddenly Ian’s arms wrapped themselves around him and held him close. “That’s not true, you’re more than that.” Then Ian’s voice was close to his ear. “If it’s me that you want, if it’s really okay, then maybe we can try to make this work.”

And then Ian tilted his head up to kiss him.

It felt different from before. When Ian led the kiss it seemed to go a lot smoother and it sent pleasant shivers down Souji’s spine. When they both pulled away, Souji was gasping for breath a little bit. He didn’t know that a kiss could have such an effect on someone. Or maybe it was because it had been Ian who kissed him.

They made out for a while, stumbling onto Ian’s couch to do so once they managed to separate for a little longer.

“It’s more comfortable,” Ian murmured softly into Souji’s ear, making the younger male shiver pleasantly.

Souji let Ian kiss him again but he wasn’t just going to lie down and let the other do whatever he wanted. His pride wouldn’t let him - he wouldn’t lose to Ian, despite being younger and less experienced. And well, he hadn’t been friends with the other for a while for nothing. He’d learned quite a few things.

When Ian went a little slower with their next kiss, Souji pulled away and wandered down Ian’s neck with his lips. It caught the other completely off-guard, which was something Souji considered as quite an accomplishment. He sucked on the patch of skin where the vampire-bite scar was starting to fade a little and Ian moaned.

“Boy, that spot is sensitive.”

“That spot is mine.” Souji was surprised at himself at how possessive that sounded. He partially blamed Ian’s new hairstyle for the summer months. Why cornrows out of all things. Cornrows were unfair. He’d caught himself thinking about touching them during his classes at school a few times during the day. “This spot says you’re mine.”

This apparently rendered Ian speechless for a moment.

Then Souji felt his necktie being pulled down and his shirt buttons being opened. “I usually wouldn’t do this but I don’t think I can just let you go like that, without a little payback.” He nipped on a patch of skin on Souji’s collarbone. Souji sucked in his breath sharply and looked down. He couldn’t see it but he could tell that he’d be sporting a mark later.

And he wasn’t completely sure if his kendo getup would hide it completely.

“Ian!” He swatted at the other’s shoulder.

Obliging, Ian pulled away and buttoned Souji’s shirt again as well. “I know, I know.” He looked at Souji and smiled warmly.

“That was an exception. Nothing more until you’re 18, Boy. And _no objections, okay? Don’t tempt me._ ” Ian whispering to him in English made Souji shiver again. And all he could do was nod in agreement and understanding.

Ian pulled away and went to get two glasses from the cabinet. “Now, tea? Then I’ll walk home with you. Wouldn’t want your honorable father Master Genryu to beat me up because you were picked up at school by some pervert on a motorcycle. Although I must say I’m hurt that Rin-chan just forgot about me like that. I guess she only has eyes for you.”

The comment made Souji blink and then he got a sinking feeling in his stomach.

Scrambling up, he pulled out his communicator. Sure enough, there was a chat message from Daigo on the display.

[Yo, Ian, Souji! I just ran into Master Genryu and he asked me whether I knew someone who wore a black leather jacket and drove a motorcycle because Rin-chan told him that Souji went with that person after school. I told him not to worry and that it was one of my and Souji’s friends. He said not to be home too late :)b]

“That’s why I told you not to hang out at the school gate like a creeper!” Souji threw a couch pillow at Ian, face flushed red.

Laughing, Ian ducked and avoided the cushion. “No worries, I’ll get you home in time.”

“That’s not what I meant.” Souji used another pillow to hit Ian square in the face. “If you come to my school again I’ll kill you.”

“Oh my, should I be scared?”

“You better be!”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> The sharehouse Ian is staying at and the "Wataru" he is referring to are from Kamen Rider Kiva. It was included as an inside joke.


End file.
